Villa Bonita, Residential apartment building in Hollywood, California, US.
Villa Bonita is a seven-story Spanish Colonial Revival apartment building at 1817 Hillcrest Road, designed by Frank Webster and built in 1929 for $75,000. Its 24 apartments have dining areas, kitchens with breakfast nooks, and casement windows; a small marble-floored lobby retains original moldings, a chandelier, and a paneled elevator.
The Spanish Colonial Revival building was designed by Frank Webster in 1929 for Sidney Ullman, who managed business affairs for prominent actors of the era. Its construction during the late 1920s reflects Hollywood's rapid growth during the early sound film period.
The building housed people who worked in the film industry and remains a visible part of the Hollywood neighborhood today. Visitors can observe how the architecture reflects the way entertainment professionals lived during that era.
The building is located north of Franklin Avenue near Hillcrest Road and is easily visible from the surrounding streets. Visitors should note this is an active residential building, so access to the interior is limited to public areas.
Villa Bonita was built in 1929 for the cast and crew of director Cecil B. DeMille, not as his production base. Photographer Pamela Littky published a book of photographs of the building in 2016, with text by Cameron Crowe.
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